PORT ANGELES — The hardest part of being Ralphie is, without a doubt, stifling one's laughter.

So says Damon Little, the 11-year-old leading man in “A Christmas Story.” This is the tale of Ralphie Parker, his family, his buddies and his December quest, opening tonight for a three-week run.

Little, a sixth-grader at Greywolf Elementary School in Sequim, is among the nine local youngsters in this Port Angeles Community Players romp. As Ralphie, he only wants one thing for Christmas: a Red Ryder BB gun. Strenuous efforts to persuade the adults in his life that he must have it ensue, along with vivid scenarios the boy conjures up.

Those are Little's favorite parts: the fantasy scenes.

Ralphie's daydream

“I like the one where Ralphie is imagining the time he saves his parents and his younger brother from Black Bart and his desperadoes,” said the young actor. Ralphie's folks are portrayed by Peggy Kempf and Bob Bronsink, while Connor Nagel plays his kid brother Randy.

Bronsink, a regular on local stages, is having at least as much fun as the kids are with “A Christmas Story.”

The play's a warm and savory chestnut — with some interesting cuss words, Bronsink added. Since this is a show for the whole family, these aren't anything nasty; they're funny phrases made up by Bronsink's character.

Ralphie gets roughed up by a bully early on, and when he gets back at his oppressor, “he just lets them fly,” said Bronsink. These lingu istic concoctions come straight from home, out of the mouth of Dad.

Bronsink added that his role as Ralphie's dad reminds him of his own father.

“In order to get through something, he had to curse,” he said.

“A Christmas Story,” added Bronsink, is not syrupy, but it has a sweet message: “No matter what you really, really want out there, one of the best things you can have is a family; people to bounce things off of.”

Cast of characters

The “Christmas Story” cast includes a narrator: Ralphie, all grown up and portrayed by Chandler Wendeborn, as well as the passel of kids as Ralphie's classmates: Cody Anderson, Bryson Schafer, Faith Chamberlain, Alisandra Baccus, Allison Winters, Hudson Soelter and Stuart Methner. Lola Hassan-Adams plays the schoolteacher.

Tickets, at Odyssey Books, 114 W. Front St. and PACommunityPlayers.com, are $12 for adults and $6 for students and children at the Friday, Saturday and Sunday shows.

For Tuesday performances, tickets may be purchased in advance for the regular prices, and then any unsold seats will go for $6 at the door. For more information about this show and the Port Angeles Community Players, visit the above website or phone 360-452-6651.